The Los Angeles Dodgers have been active in retooling their bullpen this offseason, which comes as no surprise as president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman identified it as an area of focus heading into the 2021 season.
L.A. most notably completed a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers to acquire Corey Knebel, and also re-signed Blake Treinen to a multi-year contract that includes a club option for the 2023 season.
In smaller deals, the Dodgers also signed Tommy Kahnle to a two-year contract, but despite his optimism, isn’t expected to pitch until 2022. Jimmy Nelson was re-signed to a Minor League deal, and Brandon Morrow and Brock Stewart were brought back to the organization.
The Dodgers have additionally been connected to the likes of Brad Hand and Kirby Yates, both of whom are believed to be nearing their respective decisions in free agency. As that process unfolds, the Dodgers are also interested in Jeremy Jeffress, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com:
The reliever market remains crowded with talent, but one pitcher on a lot of radars is Jeremy Jeffress; per sources, at least 10 teams have some level of interest in the right-hander including Blue Jays, Red Sox, Cubs, Astros, Dodgers, Mets, Phillies and Nationals.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) January 18, 2021
Jeffress has pitched to a sub-2.00 ERA and 1.00 WHIP in two of the past three seasons, and is fifth among relief pitchers in ERA since 2018. The right-hander has proven effective against both right- and left-handed pitching, and could be an answer for the Dodgers in response to losing Pedro Baez to the Houston Astros.
Jeffress was an All-Star for the Brewers in 2018 but struggled mightily the following year. He was released by Milwaukee during the final month of of the 2019 season and went on to sign a one-year contract with the Chicago Cubs.
The low-risk addition paid dividends for the Cubs as Jeffress brought stability to a bullpen that had an array of openings. He finished 4-1 with eight saves, a 1.54 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 17 strikeouts over 23.1 innings pitched over 22 games.
Dodgers’ history with Jeffress
Not that it would necessarily preclude a potential signing, but the Dodgers don’t have the friendliest of history with Jeffress.
After failing to protect a lead in Game 2 of the 2018 National League Championship Series and giving up a go-ahead home run to Justin Turner, Jeffress said the Dodgers simply had gotten ‘lucky’ during their rally. He then said L.A. had all the pressure heading into Game 7.
Jeffress appeared in the winner-take-all matchup, allowing a three-run homer to Yasiel Puig late in the game. Friedman quipped after the Dodgers won the NLCS that Jeffress made a quality pitch to Puig, who had a little luck on his side.
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